Safety mechanism for splicing machines



April 22, 1952 J. TRATHEN SAFETY MECHANISM FOR SPLICING MACHINES Filed Feb. 4, 1950 Patented Apr. 22, 1952 SAFETY MECHANISM FOR SPLICING MACHINES James Trathen, Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, assignor to The B. F. Goodrich Company, New York, N. Y., a corporation of New York Application February 4, 1950, Serial No. 142,443

5 Claims.

This invention relates to safety mechanisms for splicing machines and is particularly useful in providing for safe operation of tube splicing machines.

Heretofor'e, the splicing of inner tubes before vulcanization thereof has been accomplished generally by use of splicing machines of the type shown and described in the patents to Haase No. 2,024,577, I-Iaase No. 2,024,578, and Campbell No. 2,273,464. In such an apparatus the tube ends are opposed to, each other, are clamped in flattened condition and facing each other, the opposed ends are trimmed by reciprocating knife means and the cut ends are moved laterally toward and into pressed engagement with one another to provide a butt splice. Such machines operate through a cycle of movements controlled by a timer having a cam shaft. Stopping rota-- tion of the cam shaft has depended upon a stop latch but it has been found that in use the stop latch often fails to function properly and consequently the cycle of operation has been repeated, endangering the hands of the operator who must adjust the tube ends beneath the clamping and cutting members.

The present invention aims to overcome the foregoing and other difficulties.

Objects of the invention are to provide for positively locking the clamping members in their raised position, to provide for positively preventing repetition of cycle movement, to provide dual locking mechanism requiring use by both hands for unlocking and to combine the locking means with the electrical control means so that the splicing machine cannot be started with the locking means is engaged.

These and other objects will appear from the accompanying drawings.

Of the drawings,

Fig. 1 is a side elevation of apparatus corresponding to and embodying the invention in engaged position attached to a splicing machine, the splicing machine being shown in dot-anddash lines,

Fig. 2 is a front elevation thereof, and

Fig. 3 is a view similar to Fig. 1 showing the apparatus in disengaged position.

Referring to the drawings, which show a machine constructed in accordance with and embodying the invention, the numeral [0 designates the frame of a tube splicing machine having thereon spaced-apart aligned supports I I, I2 for supporting tube ends l3, 14. These supports are moved laterally as seen in Fig. 2, toward and from each other. Clamp members l5, [6 are pivotally mounted one on each support as at H for movement toward and from the supports ll, l2 to clamp the tube ends thereagainst. The clamp members are operated by fluid operated cylinders such as I 8 controlled by timing mecha- 2 nism (not shown). The timer is set in operation by a pair of limit switches I9, 20 connected in series and adapted to be closed manually, the two switches requiring use of both of the operators hands for closing them.

To provide positive locking of the clamps l5, IS in their raised position, each clamp is provided with an ear 21 having a locking pin 22 projecting laterally therefrom. A swinging latch bar such as 23, 23 is pivotally secured as at 24 to the frame l0 above each clamp member, and has a notch 26 for engaging the locking pin 22. The notches 26 are open toward the frame to permit swinging of the latch bars away from the frame ill to release the pins. As the clamps l5, l6 move laterally with the supports l l, 2, the pins 22 may enter the slots 26 of the bars 23, 23' when the clamps are in the raised position illustrated and the supports ll, l2 are moved apart at the end of the splicing cycle of movements. To restrain the latch bars from lateral movement, guides 27, 28 are fixed to frame It! and have slots for confining the latch bars from moving laterally as seen in Fig. 2 but permit swinging movement thereof as seen in Fig. 1.

For swinging the latch bars outwardly from frame I 0 and simultaneously closing switches I9, 20, a pair of levers 30, 3| are pivotally supported from brackets 32, 33,.fixed to frame In. Each lever 30, 3| has a link 34 pivotally connected to it. The links each engage a crank arm 35 or 36. The crank arms are fixed respectively to horizontal shafts 31, 38 rotatable in bearings 39, 40 secured to frame In. Shafts 31, 38 have arms 4|, 42 fixed to their opposite ends respectively. Pins 43, 44 are secured to the latch bar 23, 23 in position to be engaged by arms 4|,

42 when levers 30, 3| are swung to the left in Fig. 1 and thereby to unlatch the clamps l5, 16.

Links 45, 46 pivotally connect latch bars 23, 23

respectively to the arms of switches I9, 20 and close these switches at the same time.

The operation is as follows: With the clamps I5, [6 raised, the latch bars are hooked to the clamps and prevent their being lowered while the operator places the ends of the tube over the supports ll, 12. The operator then grasps levers 30, 3|, one with each hand, and pulls them forward. This unlatches the clamps and closes switches I9, 20 to start the timer. The timer then lowers the clamps l5, l5 and causes the machine to trim the ends of the tube, moves supports II, I2 toward each other, and splices the tube, thereafter raising the clamps l5, I6 and then moving supports ll, 12 apart. As the supports move apart, pins 22 enter the slots 26 of the latch bars from the sides thereof and this ends the normal cycle of the machine. Should the machine attempt to repeat its cycle, the

latch bars prevent lowering the clamps until the operator again pulls levers 23, 23 forward,

The latch bars positively prevent lowering of the clamps upon the operators hands while the operator is placing the ends of the tube to be spliced in place and the clamps cannot be moved from their raised position until both hands of the operator are on the levers 23, 23.

While the apparatus has been described as used on tube splicers, it may alSO be used on tread splicers or similar machines. 7 l

. Variations may be made without departing from the scope of the invention as it is defined by the following claims.

7 I claim:

1. Safety mechanism for splicing machines of the type having a frame and a work clamp mounted thereon for relative movement laterally of said frame and also along said frame in a direction across th path of its lateral movement together with operating mechanism therefor, said safety mechanism comprising a latch bar mounted on said frame for movement relative thereto across the path of lateral movement of said Work clamp, said latch bar having a notch open in one direction of the plane of movement of said latch bar, a pin on said clamp engageable in said notch from the side of said bar by lateral movement of said clamp in one direction to lock said clamp against clamping movement until release of said latch bar, and means for disengaging said latch bar from said clamp by movement of the latch bar in a direction across the path of lateral movement of said clamp.

2. Safety mechanism for splicing machines of the type having a frame and a pair of Work clamps mounted thereon for relative movement laterally of said frame toward and from each other and also movement in a direction across the path of their lateral movement together with:

operating mechanism therefor, said safety mechanism comprising latch bars mounted on said frame for movement relative thereto across the path of lateral movement of said work clamps, each latch bar having a notch open in one direction of the plane of movement of said latch bar, a pin on each said clamp engageable in a notch of a latch bar from the side of said bar by lateral separating movement of said clamps to lock said clamps against clamping movement until release of said latch bar, and means individual to each latch bar for disengaging the latch bar from its clamp by movement of the latch bar in a direction across the path of lateral movement of said clamp.

3. Safety mechanism for splicing machines of tion of the plane of movement of said latch bar,

a pin on said clamp engageable in said notch from the side of said bar by lateral movement of said clamp in one direction to lock said clamp against clamping movement until release of said latch bar, control means for initiating the cycle of movement of the machine including a control member operable by movement of the latch .bar relative to said frame across the path of lateral movement of said work clamp, and means for so moving the latch bar to disengage it from said clamp and to start the cycle'of operation.

4. Safety mechanism for splicing machines of the type having a frame and a pair of work clamps mounted thereon for relative movement laterally of said frame toward and from each other and also movement in a direction across the path of their lateral movement together with operating mechanism controlling movements of said clamp through a cycle of movements, said safety mechanism comprising latch bars mounted on said frame for movement relative thereto across the path of lateral movement of said work clamps, each latch bar having a notch open in one direction of the plane of movement of said latch bar, a pin on each said clamp engageable in a notch of a latch bar from theside of said bar by lateral separating movement of said clamps to lock said clamps against clamping movement until release of said latch bar, control means for initiating the cycle of movement of the machine including a plurality of control members each operable by movement of a latch bar relative to said frame across the path of lateral movement of said work clamps to collectively start the cycle of movement of the machine, and means for so moving the latch bars to 'disengage them from said clamps and to start the cycle of operation.

5. Safety mechanism for splicing machines of the type having a frame, a pair of spaced work clamps thereon and means for moving the clamps simultaneously into clamping relation with the frame, said safety mechanism comprising a latch bar mounted for arcuate movement adjacent each clamp, means for releasably engaging each latch bar with its respective clamp when the clamps are out of clamping position whereby the latch bars maintain the clamps against said movement thereof, a pair of handles pivotally secured to the frame at points remote from each other and remote from the Work clamps, means connecting one of said handles to one of said latch bars and other similar means connecting the other of said handles to the other of said latch bars, each of said connecting means being operable only upon simultaneous pivotal movement of the handles to move said latch bars arcuately, thereby releasing the engaging means between the latch bars and their respective work clamps, and actuating means also operable only by said simultaneous movement of the handles to energize said clamp-moving means to effect the movement of the clamps into clamping relation with the frame.

JAMES TRATHEN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name 7 Date 1,324,640 Cameron Dec. 9, 1919 2,024,578 Haase Dec. 17, 1935 2,046,531 Page July 7, 1936 2,273,463 Campbell et al Feb. 17, 1942 2,380,269 Stuhlfauth July 10, 1945 2,428,275 Frankwich et al. Sept. 30, 1947 2,455,823 Tauber et al Dec. 7, 1948 2,541,696 George Feb. 13, 1951 2,561,019 A George July 17, 1951 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 621,169 Great Britain Apr. 5, 1949 

